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w. FRANKLIN. STEAK PERFORATOR.

Patented Jan. 10, 1888.

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STEAK PERFORATORQ Patented Jan; 10, 1888.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS W. FRANKLIN, OF PROVIDENCE, EHODE ISLAND.

STEAK-PERFORATOR.

EPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 376,080, dated January 10, 1888. Application filed March 31, 1887. Serial No. 233,223. (No model.)

fication.

It is well known that what is called .round beefsteak has a superior flavor to the higherpriced and more tender sirloin-steak,- and various devices have been employed to separate and crush thefibers of such round steakin order to render the same easier of mastication when cooked. The toughening of beef when subjected to the process ofcooking is due to the contraction of the nerve fibers which penetrate the beef in the line of the muscles, and the ordinary process of crushing the steak does not materially affect the said fibers, thus leaving the steak subject to the nerve-contraction, as, before; and in order to be able to overcome I this difficulty I have invented -a machine for perforating the steak by means of two or'more parallelseries of pcrforatingcutters, which are preferably interlocked with each other, the said interlocked series of cutters being made to reciprocate vertically over a horizontallymoving table, upon which the steak to be operated upon is placed and fedintermittingly under the reciprocating cutters, by means of which the nerve fibers of the beef will be severed into short lengths, and still leave the steak in a coherent s1ice,as before,so that while being cooked the contraction of the nerve fibers will not operate, as before, to so toughen the beef as to materially resist mastication; and my invention consists in the improved construction and arrangement of the several parts of the machine, as hereinafter fully set forth.

Figure 1 is a plan viewof my improved steak-perforating machine, the sliding table being shown in itsforward position for receiving the slice ofsteak, the rearward position being shown by broken lines. Fig.2 is a longitudinal vertical section showing the sliding table as fed under the perforating-cutters, the said cutters being shown at their lowest position in contact with the upper surface of the sliding table, a portion of the edge of thet'able being shown in elevation. Fig. 3 is a rear end elevation showing the perforating-cutters at ratchet-pawl when the table is at its extreme rearward position. Fig. 7 is a detail view showing the same when the table is at its extreme forward position.

In the accompanying drawings, A is the bed of, the machine, provided at its upper side with the ways a a, adapted to receive the projecting guides b b of the sliding table B. To the opposite sides of the bed Aare secured the upright standards 0 0, provided at their upper ends with the hubs c, which serve toforrn the bearings for the crank-shaft D, and upon the inner side of the standards 0 are formed the ways d, which serve to guide the reciprocating cutter-head E in its vertical reciprocation over the table B. The cutter-head E is operatively connected to the crank-shaft D by means of the connectingrods e e, and the shaft D is provided with a balance-weight, f. To the pinion-gear F, which turns loosely upon a stud, g, secured to the side of one of the standards G, is attached the hand-crank G, the pinion F being arranged to engage with the gear H, secured to the crankshaft D, and thus by turning the crank G reciprocating motion will be imparted to the cutter-head E. The table Bis provided at its opposite edges with the ratchet-teeth h, and to the inner side of the standards 0 O, at the point t,-are pivoted the leversI I, the said levers being provided at their lower ends with the pivot-ed ratchetpawls J, which are adapted to engage with the ratchet-teeth h of the table, the levers I being forked at their upper ends to embrace wipercams K, secured to the crankshaft D, and by means of the said cams Kthe leversIand pivoted pawlsJ will be made to vibrate, and thus cause an intermittent sliding movement of the table B,th rough the action of the ratchet-pawls J upon the teeth h, in timely relation to the up-and-down movement of the cutters.

The steak-perforating cutters j are made in chisel form, and preferably arranged in two parallel rows or series, which interlock with each other laterally, as shown in Fig. 5, and in order to secure the cutters to the reciprocating head E to the best advantage I chamber out the 5 head E, as shown in the section, Fig. 2, and after setting the perforatingcutters in their parallel interlocking rows in proper position, with their ends within the said chamber, pour molten lead around their said ends to fill the [O chamber, thus firmly securing the cutters to the reciprocating head E in a cheap and convenient manner.

Extending fro m one of the standards Cto the other, at each side of the rows of cutters, are

I 5 placed the clearer-bars L, which serve to pre vent the steak,when perforated by the cutters, from rising with the same from the table. At the under side of the table 13 is formed the downward projection 7:, as shown in section in 20 Fig. 2 and by broken lines in Fig. 1, and upon the bed A,under the table 'lLare placed the two stop-pins Z Z, which serve to properly limit the movement of the table B in both directions,

the pins 1 Z being so arranged relatively to the 25 ends of thetable B and the ratchet-pawls J that when the table is moved backward to the stoppin Z the ratchet-pawls J will be freed from the ratchet-teeth of the table and drop to a pendent position from their pivots, as shown 30 in Fig. 6, and will also be in the same pendent position when the table B has been brought to its extreme forward position, as shown in Fig. 7, and when the table has been pushed slightly forward from the position shown in Fig. 7 the 5 ratchet-pawls will be raised from the pendent position to the position shown in Figs. 2 and 4, and will then, upon the revolution of the crankshal't,by means of the hand-crank, serve to feed the table interniittingly under the cutters, thus bringing the piece of steak successively under the action of the said cutters, by means of which the steak will be so perforated as to sever the nerve fibers, which by shrinking when under the process of cooking serve to toughen the steak. \Vhen the table, with the steak resting thereon, has been fed backward to the position shown in Fig. 6, the ratchet-pawls will be caused to drop to the pendent position, as therein shown. Then the table is to be brought forward to the position shown in Fig. 1 by pulling upon the wire handle 7)), thus bringing the ratchet-pawls to a pendent position at the rear end of the table, so that after removing the perforated steak and the placing of another piece of steak upon the table a slight backward movement will suffice to bring the table again under the cut ters, with the ratchet'pawls in operative err gagenient with the ratchet-teeth of the table.

I claim as my invention- In combination, the crank-shaft, the perforating-cutters connected with the crank-shaft, the wiper-cams, the levers and ratehet-pawls, the table provided with the ratchet-teeth, and the bed provided with the stops, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

THOMAS \V. FRANKLIN.

XVitnesses:

JOHN S. Lmon, Soormrns SCIIOLFIELD. 

